This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Conventionally, reclining articles of furniture (i.e., chairs, sofas, loveseats, and the like) require a mechanism to bias a leg rest assembly in the extended and stowed positions and to move a seat back member from an upright to a fully reclined position. Most reclining furniture members include an upholstered frame supported from a stationary base assembly. For example, known combination platform reclining chairs permit reclining movement of the seat assembly and actuation of the leg rest assembly independently of the seat back member. The leg rest assembly is operably coupled to a drive mechanism to permit the seat occupant to selectively move the leg rest assembly between its normally retracted (i.e., “stowed”) and elevated (i.e., “extended”) positions. The drive mechanism is manually-operated and includes a handle which, when rotated by the seat occupant, causes concurrent rotation of a drive rod for extending or retracting the leg rest assembly.
Known mechanisms provide for clearance to a nearby wall with the seat back member in the upright position; however, they do not limit a rearward displacement of the seat back member during motion toward the fully reclined position and, therefore, the seat back member can contact the wall when fully reclined. Manually actuated mechanisms are known that can limit a rearward displacement of the seat back member between the upright and fully reclined positions, which permits the furniture member to be positioned in close proximity to a wall without the seat back member contacting the wall in any operating position of the furniture member. These furniture members are known as “wall proximity” furniture members.